บท 3: Traitor !

— "Draco... no... not you."

Draco recognized the voice immediately and relaxed, but without losing his concentration.

— "Pansy...," he whispered with a very different intonation than usual.

Hermione was confused by such a drastic change on the part of the blonde. She had never imagined that he could be so tender. To her, Malfoy was capable of nothing but meanness and spite.

— "It's not what you think, Pansy," he clarified with the same gentle tone as he slowly moved closer. "The Dark Lord has given me a mission..."

— "A mission ?" Pansy repeated stupidly.

Being born in the Malfoy house gave Draco a distinct advantage. He had developed his charisma and knew how to use it when necessary. And on Pansy Parkinson, it worked perfectly. The witch had always been impressed by Draco and in his presence she quickly lost her temper. Even as an adult, as soon as the blond was near her, her brain had trouble functioning properly.

And right now, Pansy was completely confused. She didn't want to believe that the man she loved could have become a traitor. He couldn't have stooped to releasing this vulgar Mudblood. But to hear him speak her name so sweetly was so unexpected of him that she forgot all her fears.

— "Yes, I have a mission," Draco continued as he almost closed the gap between them. "By saving her, the Dark Lord hopes that I can become a spy within their Order."

At his words, Hermione felt her hair stand on end. But something prevented her from rebelling, for the so-called Pansy was still holding them in thrall. The slightest slip and the witch could cast a spell that could prove fatal.

But despite this possibility, Hermione wanted to know if Draco's revelations were true or if he had just said it to buy them time. Either way, the former Gryffindor was puzzled. How was Draco going to fool the Order of the Phoenix when she knew about his mission ? Or if not, how was Draco going to convince Pansy to let them go ?

While Hermione's brain was firing on all cylinders, Draco finished bridging the gap between them. With Draco so close to her, Pansy lowered her wand completely.

Draco towered over the young woman by a good head, imposing his entire aura on her so that she could only be focused on him. He gently raised his left hand to the witch's face and took hold of the thin silver mask. He continued on, removing her hood.

Hermione saw that Pansy hadn't changed since Hogwarts except perhaps that she was thinner than before. But one thing was for sure, her love for Draco was still unwavering.

Seeing that he had her undivided attention, Draco continued in a similar tone but with a certain gravity :

— "This mission may be my undoing Pansy..."

— "What do you mean ?" The witch immediately became concerned at such an admission.

But Draco didn't answer anything, he wanted to maintain a certain tension between them. He looked into the witch's eyes before gently caressing her cheek with his fingers. At the gentle touch, Pansy lost her footing completely, so much so that she blinked.

— "I know I'm not very demonstrative, Pansy...," the blonde continued in a tone of confidence. "But..."

Malfoy let his answer linger for a few seconds to get the desired effect : the witch was hanging on his lips and waiting religiously for him to finish his sentence.

— "I care for you, more than I should," the man revealed in a terribly deep breath.

Pansy was totally surprised by this statement. Her mouth opened and closed several times, but no tangible sentence could come out except her first name :

— "Draco..."

— "Besides... you could possibly come with me," Draco added as he leaned forward. "The Dark Lord never said I should do this alone."

Hearing this proposal from the man she loved made Pansy's guard drop completely. She could never have expected so much from him. And, taking advantage of her total inclination, Draco placed his lips on her lips and she automatically closed her eyes.

Hermione was still watching this Death Eater couple and she was boiling with anger inside. She realised that Malfoy had only released her to serve his master's interests. It was all a game, a charade to bring down their side.

The former Gryffindor was mad as hell, not just at Malfoy but at herself ! If she hadn't been captured that day, she wouldn't be here now.

But just as Draco had begun his kiss, something chilled Hermione's blood : a slight glint had appeared in the blonde's right hand. By the time she realised what it was, everything was happening at breakneck speed.

Malfoy, still holding Pansy's face with his left hand, had slid a blade into his other hand. Taking advantage of the witch's complete disarray from his kiss, he roughly pushed her away with his left hand as he slit her throat in one swift motion with his other hand.

Blood flowed from the wound of the victim who did not understand what had just happened. His eyes no longer expressed love but total incomprehension towards the blond.

— "Don't take it personally, Pansy," he said, pointing his wand at her.

He stared at the young woman with determination before flickering his wrist unapologetically.

— "Avada Kedavra !"

The deadly spell struck Parkinson's body with full force. She flew through the air, blood splattering all around her and even on her murderer. Then her lifeless body crashed with a thud against one of the pillars several metres back.

When she fell back to the ground, Draco looked down at her clothes. They were stained with the blood of the former Slytherin.

Draco suppressed a shudder of disgust as he realised that he also had some on his face. He didn't like being neglected, no matter what circumstances he was in.

— "Scourgify," he threw on himself to wipe away all the dirt.

Hermione kept shifting her gaze from Draco to Pansy. She felt hot, her head hurt and everything seemed to be spinning around her. She could even feel her stomach ready to turn and her vision was slightly blurry.

— "Now is not the time to faint... get over here !" Malfoy ordered sharply before being interrupted.

— "You're not going anywhere !" Exclaimed the deep, gravelly voice of a new person in the room, followed by the sound of a slamming door.

The sound echoed throughout the room, adding to the sense of imminent threat. And the threat was real, for a Death Eater was now slowly making his way towards them. He wore neither mask nor bonnet, he had never wanted to. On the contrary, he used the fear he aroused in people when they recognised him. Nevertheless, it was impossible to confuse him with anyone else.

He was large and had filthy hands with claw-like nails. His body odour was strong and unpleasant : a mixture of earth, sweat and blood. In addition, he blithely displayed his sharp teeth, making him look more bestial than human. But after all, Fenrir Greyback was proud of being a werewolf and had no reason to hide what he was.

— "Shit !" Draco whispered through his teeth as he recognised the voice of the lycanthrope. For if the wizard was present, it could only mean one thing : the raid orchestrated by his Master was probably over.... and with it, their chance of survival.

Greyback was getting closer, clapping his hands. The noise added even more pressure to the atmosphere. The sorcerer wore his cruel, bloodthirsty smile. The murderous aura he gave off stunned Hermione, and she seemed almost hypnotised by the malevolent intent in his grey eyes.

— "So... you're the traitor who gave us such a hard time," the werewolf said with satisfaction.

Seeing this opponent before him, Draco knew that the fight was inevitable and that the outcome could only be death. He had to act quickly and couldn't afford to be distracted if he had to constantly watch Granger. He pointed his wand at the brunette without taking his eyes off his opponent for a second.

— "Protego Maxima," he whispered.

A trickle of magic reached Hermione and turned into a translucent bubble surrounding the witch. The spell was not infallible, but it could provide some security for the young woman by protecting her from many spells that were intentionally or unintentionally cast in her direction.

Not waiting a moment longer, he advanced towards Greyback with the firm intention of finishing as quickly as possible.

— "The Master will reward me greatly for your death," sneered the lycanthrope in a hoarse voice.

— "You'll have to survive until then," Draco replied, thinking of the best way to defeat him. His enemy had a distinct advantage because he was a werewolf. Not only did he have a massive build, but he was immune to the effects of many spells. Defeating him would therefore be complicated and would require a good deal of agility.

— "Ohh ! But the little Malfoy has become quite pretentious since he received the Master's teachings !" The sharp-toothed Death Eater sarcastically minauded.

— "You wish you had the privilege, don't you ? But you're too wild to understand the subtlety of his teachings," the blonde retorted, even though it was not enough to provoke him.

— "You're more like me than you know, kid ! If I'm a savage, you're not the one who's being picky ! Murdering your own fiancée to free an insignificant Mudblood shows that you have a lot of cruelty in you !"

— "Anyway, you wouldn't even understand if I explained it to you..."

But the end of his sentence was lost in the air as Fenrir Greyback decided to launch the hostilities.

— "Crucio !" Fenrir incanted with a fluid movement.

Draco reacted immediately: he couldn't dodge the spell without it going straight to Granger. But he took advantage of the distance between them to deflect the spell, which crashed into one of the pillars on the opposite side.

— "So... predictable," Draco said, struggling to keep his heartbeat calm. He had been playing with fire, he couldn't afford any hesitation at the risk of taking an unfortunate spell himself.

Hermione, on the other hand, had held her breath when she saw the flash of light cast by Greyback's wand. Despite the protection spell the blonde had cast on her, she had never felt so vulnerable in her life. She hated not having any control over the situation. And above all, she couldn't stand being without a wand because it meant feeling totally naked and helpless against her surroundings. She had to do everything to find ways to protect herself. Especially when the two black mages really started to fight.

Hermione took refuge behind one of the pillars in the room while keeping an eye on the fight. The magic was coming from all sides between the two of them. The witch saw why Voldemort had won the previous game against the Order of the Phoenix. There were no rules of combat, it was who would finish off their opponent first. In fact, the death curse was most often used without actually hitting the target.

The more the battle progressed, the less Hermione could tell the two wizards apart. They kept using their semi-apparition abilities. It was a succession of fleeting apparitions from one end of the room to the other, from which appeared the jets of light corresponding to the spells cast against each other.

As she ducked behind another pillar, Hermione's eyes widened at what was happening. Fenrir Greyback had stopped apparition and had snatched a huge block of stone from the ground. The piece of rock levitated for a moment before flying rapidly towards Malfoy. Malfoy dodged it without worrying about the trajectory it had taken.

Luckily the Gryffindor had enough reflexes to escape certain death. Indeed, the projectile ended up on the pillar where she was previously standing. The impact had been so violent that it broke the pillar in three parts, causing dust to fall from the ceiling.

— 'You're doing great, kid !' The werewolf congratulated the Slytherin. "I can't wait to rip your jugular out with my fangs !"

— "You talk too much, you mutt !" Draco retorted before a red spell came out of his wand.

Hermione struggled to her feet as the column collapsed. How she wished she could defend herself better. But just as she was about to mourn being without her wand again, a thought crossed her mind. Why hadn't she thought of it before ?

Wands, she had had more than one handy since Malfoy had come to free her. Sure, they might not have obeyed her as much as her own wand, but at least she wouldn't have been so vulnerable and defenseless.

It was as she thought about this that an idea immediately came to her : Pansy's wand. Hermione turned her head to look for the body of the deceased : it was on the opposite side of the room from Hermione, but the wand was lying next to it. She would have to cross part of the room without getting a spell from the two fighters. But it was worth it : it was her only way to regain some control over her own situation.

She began to dart between the pillars while watching and avoiding the projectiles and spells. She only had a few more metres to go and then she could finally reach the witch's wand. But that was without counting on Greyback :

— "Not even in a dream ! Bombarded Maxima !" The Death Eater screamed as he realised what the Mudblood was planning to do.

The spell had been very violent as it had formed a gaping hole in the floor. Some of the beams holding the structure together had been destroyed on impact. Even the edges of the huge crevice were still disintegrating.

The powerful blast had thrown up countless pieces of stone mixed with the blood of Pansy, whose body had simply slid into the pit.

Hermione could have been swept away by the blast but the protection spell had worked well, saving her from injury.

However, the spell had its limits and it had not allowed her to stop before the ground exploded. She had tried to slow down the momentum she had started to gain Pansy's wand, but she found herself too close to the edge of the rift. She tried to keep her precarious balance but made the mistake of looking down.

She realised that she was several feet above the lake filled with Inferi trapped in the Fiendfyre. Hermione screamed in terror and lost what little balance she had before she toppled forward.

— "Granger !" Draco shouted as he heard the witch's terrified voice.

He had completely forgotten about the fight with Greyback and instantly turned to her. Seeing that she was about to topple over, he used his semi-apparition ability to land in the same spot she had been in the moment before.

Draco was lying on the ground, his arm outstretched and holding the brunette's wrist with all his might : he hadn't gone to all this trouble to have her die here !

He was about to topple her so that she joined him on the floor still in place, but he froze in his movement when he heard the voice of his opponent satisfied :

— "You lost, you traitor !" Greyback sneered with a carnivorous laugh.

He pointed his wand in their direction and two words echoed around the room.

— "Avada Kedavra !"